Natural Vision
by Eyrie659
Summary: Yasuo's past hasn't quite come full circle yet. Perhaps with the help of a friend, and sharing the life of another, he can finally bury the demons chasing him. Can he accomplish that which seems so impossible in time to bring an order to Ionia, and furthermore all of Valoran, before a prophecy foretold ages beforehand comes to fruition? Will the wanderer find honor in salvation?


I woke with a start. My other half, the ancient tree I was linked too, was in distress. I wondered what it would be; very foreigners, and even less Ionians, ever ventured into this grove. Only a demented creature would cause this form of distress, and unless the next spirit Walker had arisen already a passing soul would be causing much more chaos than this. Therefore, I rationalized it was something not directly concerning my spirit, nor my corporeal form….

The persistent encouragement from my ethereal spirit partner beckoned me to investigate, leading to my departure from the warm glow of the quaint fireplace in my rather Spartan bedroom. A rustling of leaves, and I burst back into the physical plane, directly affront of an aesthetic fountain placed in an alcove created by my tree and a clearing.

The shade was rather comfortable, and the soft pitter patter of the flowing water in the stone basin was refreshing. An oddly out of place wind was howling by, certainly out of character for my home. I bit my lip in curiosity- not many Ionian phenomena caused winds to blow without some otherworldly manifestation of complete doom and horror.

Then I saw the cause of my homes' anxiety. Someone was passing by, and he didn't exactly look as if he had any set direction in mind. A wanderer, perhaps. I was content to simply watch- I'm pretty sure he was unaware of my presence so far. The passerby – the wanderer – cast a cursory glance to the intricate sundial set atop a simple white-granite pedestal, placed mere feet from the opening to the ancient trees' inside.

My sundial-this super heavy, massive piece of unmoving weight- began rotating at his touch. Oddly enough, the actual dial appeared to come to a rest where it had begun its unplanned journey. If he hadn't piqued my interest before, he most certainly had enraptured me now. Just who was this stranger, exactly?

"More often than not, it leaves us where we began, if you've not realized already. The wind, I mean." I adopted a shocked face, taken by surprise that he'd noticed my arrival. My only attempt to hide it was a startled cough; I hadn't expected his voice to be so unwavering, so commanding. I stepped into the light, and he nonchalantly cast a weary glance at me. "Fancy me a trespasser? Whatever, I'll be off with the breeze before you ever realize it." I gathered a few words and replied.

"Not a trespasser. Certainly a wanderer. Not many come into this particular spirit dwelling with intent, but mere resolve, friend." I tried gauging his reaction to being a wanderer, but I was no people person. He could have been annoyed, shocked, or creeping into murderous intent and I'd not have caught on. Until of course, he confirmed it.

"A wanderer…. Resolve and intent. Some pretty annoying language you have, at least to me. No, don't call me wanderer. Call me Rafael, for the time." Without pausing for my name, he fluidly drew a breathtaking long sword, one certainly holding memories. Without further ado, he cracked the cork of a bottle of alcohol right off the bottle, taking a bountiful drag of the liquid. "Yeah so, spirit dwelling and all. Suppose you get the occasional supernatural guy every once in a while then right? I'm actually looking for someone, as a matter of fact. No doubt one of your tree friends, the one with the burnt meadow, told me that another wonderer, feeling massive amounts of sorrow and regret, had passed by a few days ago. Probably heading for a port off land." He seemed to pause, if only for a moment. The hesitation passed, replaced instead with a question. "Do you know anything of this person?"

I carelessly clicked my tongue, racking my memory for any other people passing by that I hadn't spoken to. There was one thing, but I had written it off as just an anomaly four days prior.

I cocked my head, locking eyes with Rafael. What an interesting person, to be so entwined with the wind. Tapping my hand along my _dimidium, _a traditional Ionian garment, I carefully answered his question.

"Someone had passed by, about four days ago. I can't really tell what was wrong with them, but they had some serious issues. They must have been feeling some serious regret, maybe made a bad decision and he's trying to deal with the fallout? I'm not sure, hope he gets over it. Life isn't meant to be so bleak, for sure."

Rafael scoffed, clearly taken aback by the remark. My raised eyebrows prompted a response, though I wasn't sure if it'd be good to hear or just another person leaving themselves to despair. "Some are accustomed to the bleak, spirit. Some don't want that naïve happiness that comes with being an oblivious spirit or monarch. I have but one purpose, and purpose is what drives me." Hm... Purpose drives him. Maybe purpose was the wind then.

"You mean the wind, maybe? What are you, chasing something?" a sharp, somewhat forced laugh escaped him.

"Chasing? You could say that. Though, I most certainly am running from my past too. I'm lost and looking for a way back, though it's been a long road, for sure." Another drink from the bottle, then he continued, "I'm actually on my way to the institute of war stranger. Ha, if you weren't tied to this tree you'd go crazy, being around all those touchy feeling emotions. Hell, I bet I've got some of the smallest problems in the league, as a matter of fact." _If you want to help people, the league is the place to go…_ I took this advice from my spirit with a grain of salt, questioning the ideal of the league. I knew what it was enough to know that it was basically repeated homicide that most the participants relished all too much, but understood it did far more help than harm.

At the urging of my spirit, I decided to ask about the whole league and its standing today.

"Rafael, you're involved with the league? Perhaps you'd tell me about it, and I would part with some aged mead, perfect for the journey?" I was reluctant to ask him, seeing as he was a complete stranger. But what reason did he have to wish me ill will?

"Oh, bit more alcohol never hurt anybody. By the way, I'm not involved, no. I _will be,_ but I'm unaffiliated now. The purple liquid drained from his flask, now an empty bottle. Discarding it back into his pack, Rafael coughed once, clearly enjoying the strong liquid. He returned his gaze, affirming my proposition by saying, "Let's talk it over a bottle of this legendary alcohol you promised eh?"

Not recalling bragging about it at all, but not really caring, I vanished deep below the surface, into a natural, chilled cavern, hefting my one crate of freezing, aged mead, and once again returned to Rafael, accompanied by a rustling of leaves. I gently smiled, placing the crate of nine bottles onto the fertile earth. I was mostly sure Rafael would rethink his alcoholic preferences after drinking one of these, but he was a man of surprises. I popped the cork off one bottle, tossing another to Rafael. He deftly caught it by the neck, fancily twirling it in his hand and seemingly vanishing the cork. Quite an aptitude for the alcohol, no doubt.

I inhaled the sweet aroma of the fluid, recalling many fond memories. A smile found its way onto my face, one I shared with Rafael. He simply raised one eyebrow, then downed a whole quarter of the liquid without a second thought. What a man.

He turned his gaze to the shining sun, clearly somewhat disappointed in the very light drink. After a few seconds, a smile alighted on Rafael's lips too, replacing the uneasy features of his weary face and obviously easing his burdens.

"I may have misjudged you friend. Anyone with a taste for drinks like this will have many stories to tell. Don't suppose this brew has a name….?"

I had to concentrate for a moment, pushing away some of the more intriguing memories brought to the surface by the magical concoction, then recalled the name.

"_Vita. _An ancient dialect of Ionian, I believe it means-"Rafael sharply cut me off, but what he said surprised me. "It means life. And no, I'm pretty sure the Ionians just stole the word from a different language. Makes me think of a friend... makes me think of him in a way I haven't in all too long."

That was just one property of the beverage. A delicacy for some, a burden to others. Rafael continued; "Why not accompany me to the institute? A sword and drink are good company, but not for a lonely journey…"

It wasn't a long journey, but I wasn't sure if I should leave the _anima_, the tree I was standing vigil over. The statement from before echoed in my head: "_The league is the place to go…."_ Until this man told me more of the league, I would continue viewing it as a solution to most this world's problems. Considering Noxus had invaded the Ionian homeland only a short seven years ago… maybe having friends with say in the actual league of legends was a beneficial thing to have.

Deciding the positives outweighed the possible negatives, I decided I might as well make a short journey to the league.

"I'll be back in a moment, Rafael. I have a few things to attend to before I depart with you, but they'll take but a few moments. And please, you can call me Michael."

Rafael lifted his bottle again, emptying the soothing liquid from the clear bottle, then delivered one short line;

"Please, call me Yasuo, the Wanderer."


End file.
